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No council decision made on ‘vital’ Sandy Bear bereavement service

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County Hall

County Hall

THE CABINET member for Education and Safeguarding, Cllr Sue Perkins, has said that no decision has been made on the Sandy Bear bereavement service.

That was despite the Hywel Dda Health Board making a statement that the service would be coming to an end in June.

Cllr Perkins made the comments at the Children and Families Overview and Scrutiny Committee on Thursday, April 14.

She said that the news was a red herring and said there would still be a bereavement service provided in the future.

Cllr Guy Woodham said: “I do not recall at any stage being made aware of £50,000 funding was going to be withdrawn this year.

“Obviously and rightly this is causing a lot of public concern and I would like an explanation as to how we find ourselves reading about it in the paper before we know about it before an Overview and Scrutiny Committee.”

Cllr Sue Perkins said: “The Committee will know that we have looked at lots of different strands of funding, we’ve found ourselves with £170,000 being removed from the Families First grant so we are looking at lots of different things.

“The decision on Sandy Bear has not been made. That is a complete red herring. No decision on Sandy Bears has been made whatsoever, it hasn’t come to Cabinet. In the mix of everything we are looking at, that has been one of them.

“I will not, as a Cabinet member, agree to a reduction in a service unless we can provide it in a different way so I will not agree to have no bereavement counselling, I will not agree to having no other counselling for children and bereavement counselling has to be the highest form of it.

“Until that comes to a decision with Hywel Dda, we can make sure that whatever provision we provide in the future, I don’t know what that is, and I make it a guarantee that we will always have a high level bereavement service within that.”

Cllr Rhys Sinnett said there had been a lot of comment being made on social media that the service would close in June and asked whether options were still being discussed.

Cllr Perkins added: “As far as I am aware, there has been no decision made and I have made it quite clear that I will not agree to any decision made without me being informed and being absolutely confident that that provision and the best provision is, it might not be that they need high-end provision, but as far as I am concerned that is not the case.”

Cllr Jonathan Nutting said: “This council is under fire on every direction. We know that this has been going around in the press and social media and all we have done is sit on our hands. We should have come out and said that no decision has been made.”

The Director for Children and Schools, Kate Evan-Hughes said: “Hywel Dda will make a determination on the service but in the discussions we have had with them it is about making sure that we provide the service that the children and young people need, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it won’t be delivered in the same way.”

Cllr Mike John said he was pleased to hear that they would not be giving the service up unless there was something satisfactory in place to take its place.

Cllr Jonathan Nutting highlighted a statement from the Health Board which reads: “The Sandy Bear Service will end in June 2016 as a commissioned service.

“We continue our work with the county council and other partners to explore new opportunities for bereavement services for children young people and their families.”

Cllr Nutting said that the council did not have their finger on the pulse while Cllr Davies asked for Cllr Perkins to give the committee updates on the future of the service.

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Rugby Weekly – Tenby’s promotion push continues

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It’s crunch time for all rugby clubs around the county, whether promotion is their aim or fighting relegation or even just trying to improve their league position, it’s now or never. 

Last weekend saw an important win for Fishguard in division two west which should put any relegation fears to bed completely. James Griffiths added an impressive 18 points for the Seagulls as they defeated Nantgaredig 33-19. 

Elsewhere in the second division, Milford were beaten 32-8 by a good Lampeter outfit. The Mariners are still a little too close for comfort with the drop zone but should have enough quality to see them safe. 

At the other end of the table Tenby sit in second place and have played fewer games than leaders St Clears and third place Lampeter. They won impressively again last weekend, beating Pontyberem 64-19 at Haywood Lane. Fletcher Broadhurst impressed with two tries as did Hywel Baker who also grabbed himself a brace. Another excellent performance in an outstanding season so far in which promotion would be the absolute icing on the cake. 

In Division Three West, Pembroke were well beaten by Laugharne 74-15 in which the outstanding Liam Price and Nico Setaro both crossed the whitewash 4 teams a piece. The latter also added 7 successful conversions. 

There was a local derby at Pill Parks where Llangwm hosted Pembroke Dock Quins and it was an exciting clash. The visitors won narrowly 28-23, Craig Barnett and Gethin Bradney both scored two tries for the Quins. The Wasps battled hard and will be proud of their performance, Gethin Thomas impressed for the hosts with two tries of his own but it wasn’t enough to secure the points. 

St David’s hosted the high flying Cardigan outfit and were unable to score in reply to the visitors 20 points, with it ending 20-0. The Saints however won’t be losing too much sleep over it as they have had a great season so far. 

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Stephen Crabb leads inquiry on retaining community bank services  

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PRESELI Pembrokeshire MP, and Chair of the Welsh Affairs Select Committee Stephen Crabb is leading an inquiry in Parliament that will investigate the closure of high street banks in Wales, as well as access to cash.

In November 2023, Pembrokeshire saw the closure of Lloyds Bank in St Davids, and in the coming months both Barclays Bank and Halifax in Haverfordwest are set to close. In recent years, Wales has experienced a rapid decline in the number of high street banking services available to the public. Already in 2024, 23 high street bank closures have been announced in Wales, while automated teller machines (ATMs) declined by nearly a quarter between 2018 and 2023.

The Committee willconsider how declining high street banking services are impacting vulnerable people and small businesses across Wales, who are often more reliant on cash than digital banking. It will also examine how Wales is being affected by the loss of high street bank services, and whether the problem is worse in Wales than other parts of the UK.

Mr Crabb is a staunch advocate for retaining community banking facilities, especially in rural communities like Pembrokeshire where many local branches remain the only source of face-to-face banking provision for miles.

Recently Mr Crabb challenged Barclays Bank senior management on their decision to close the bank branch in Haverfordwest– a move that will see Barclays not only pull out of the county town, but means they won’t have a branch left anywhere in Pembrokeshire. He has also engaged with LINK – the UK’s largest cash machine network – and continues to campaign on the basis that a Banking Hub is established and that ATM machines should be retained or installed, especially in areas worst affected by the closures.  

Following the launch of the inquiry, MP Crabb added: “It is really sad to see so many banks across Wales closing as online banking grows in popularity. Despite the advantages of online banking, for a rural community with an ageing population like Pembrokeshire, bank branches hold huge importance as they offer face-to-face customer service.”

“I am acutely aware of the inconvenience that the bank closures locally have already caused following hundreds of replies from constituents to my ‘online banking survey’ ”

“I am looking forward to gathering further evidence on this subject through the committee’s inquiry, and will continue to put pressure on the relevant stakeholders to ensure that adequate alternative provisions are made through the establishment of banking hubs as well as the instalment of ATM machines where necessary.”

“In this inquiry, we are particularly keen to hear from those likely to be directly affected by the shift away from cash and physical banks. I encourage anyone with first-hand experience of losing banking services to give evidence to the Committee”

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Trains resume between Carmarthen and Pembroke Dock as works end

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TRAIN services resumed this morning (Thursday 28 March) after ten days of essential round-the-clock work to upgrade track and drainage between Carmarthen and Pembroke Dock.

The railway was closed from Monday 18 March to Wednesday 27 March to allow Network Rail teams to replace more than 200 metres of track and 300 tonnes of ballast (track stones) between Pembroke station and Pembroke Dock.

Work to improve the drainage between Narbeth and Kilgetty stations was also completed at the same time.

Nick Millington, Network Rail Wales and Borders route director, said: “This essential work in Pembrokeshire demonstrates our commitment to improving the reliability of the service we provide to passengers along our route.

“We know that replacing the track can be disruptive and very noisy, so I would like to thank the residents of Pembroke for their patience while our team carried out this crucial work.”

Colin Lea, Planning and Performance Director at Transport for Wales said: “We’re pleased that our colleagues in Network Rail have completed this essential work and that Transport for Wales rail services resumed today.

“We’d like to thank passengers for their patience while this work has progressed and look forward to welcoming passengers back in time for the Easter weekend.”

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